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Eagle Lake Mayor Tim Kelley reviewed numerous city improvements and initiatives during the annual State of the City address, Thursday, Nov. 6, at the Eagle Lake Community Center.
The most applauded announcement of the night was the news of a third traffic signal light at US 90A and Farm to Market 3013. Kelley announced that the in-progress traffic signal light has been installed and awaits tie-in with the railroad. After this last step, the intersection will cease to be a four-way flashing stop and begin operating like a normal stoplight.
“The next step in our project planning with [the Texas Department of Transportation] is to eliminate truck traffic on Main Street in the downtown area,” Kelley said. “…After numerous discussions with TxDOT, one viable option to do this was provided. That plan was adopted by the city council and is currently in the planning stages. It includes the planning and construction of an additional stop light at the US 90A and McCarty intersection.”
The intersection will also have to be realigned to accommodate the new stoplight. Kelley estimates the project’s timeline to be less than two years. As for other ongoing street work, the chip sealing of roads will be completed within 30 days, weather permitting.
Community spaces
Kelley highlighted the Eagle Lake Bird Trail and Natural Area as one of the year’s biggest projects. The renovations involved removing over 20 dump trucks of debris, repairing the boardwalk, installing additional benches and introducing QR code signs. When scanned, the signs display various educational information about wildlife, city history and more. The city is awaiting a grant agreement from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to continue proposed improvement work.
“We’ve got a really cool nature trail right here in Eagle Lake, and it’s half-a-mile round trip [away],” Kelley said. “…There’s a lot of cool history here, and you can get a lot of that if you walk the trail.”
The city also massively renovated the Eagle Lake Community Center thanks to a donation from the David and Eula Wintermann Foundation. The main hall, small meeting room and kitchen received a remodel. Additions included disability- compliant restrooms, a commercial refrigerator and a new roof over the main hall. Finally, the large windows in the main room and all tables and chairs were replaced.
“If there’s a power outage or if we have a bad winter storm, folks in Eagle Lake can come here,” Kelley said. “We’ve got a gas-operated generator, a really nice generator, so this is a place where people can come to be warm.”
Kelley also teased the introduction of a paid fitness instructor for the fitness court to lead fitness classes. He said the city and the selected instructor are discussing scheduling and other details.
Infrastructure
Kelley also reviewed the city’s plan to expand the Eagle Lake Airport through the Wintermann land swap that will add over 70 acres to the airport. The increase of land falls under the city’s new Airport Layout Plan, a master plan to improve grant eligibility and equip the space to welcome small jet traffic. The plan outlines an extension of the runway to 5,500 long and 75 feet wide. The city also installed new runway indicator lights to improve visibility and safety for pilots in low or no light conditions.
“[The land swap] was a vital step in growing our airport,” Kelley said. “…We are on the map now, but our airport is really going to put us on the map. Once we get all of that done with the expanded runway, there is so much growth potential with our airport.”
The city also re-established its dilapidated building program this year. According to Kelley, 22 properties were provided notice of noncompliance. Of those, 10 were repaired and 12 were demolished. In the same vein, the city cracked down on junk cars this year, tagging around 122. About half went to the judge’s office, and of those, majority complied with regulations.
The city also upgraded various technology for operations this year to increase cybersecurity and uphold state law. In addition, the city entered a franchise agreement with Rise Broadband for high-speed service at city facilities. Kelley explained that if Rise experiences an outage, city phone traffic will be re-routed to Wi-Fi boxes to ensure phone operations without the cost of landlines.
The city recently received an approximately $30,000 grant for two now-completed projects through Communities Unlimited. The first was extensive mapping of all sewer and water infrastructure that will speed up locating lines and repair work. The second was a required water and sewer rate study that revealed that current rates do not meet funding requirements.
Government
Kelley honored Councilman Jim Wood and Councilman Chris Parker who died in June and July respectively for their service to the city. The council elected Randy Turner to fill one of the two empty seats in September. The city also hired three patrol officers, a utility clerk and the public works director this year. Kelley credited his motivation to an interview answer from his great, great grandfather recorded late in his life around the 1950s.
“He was asked what he was most proud of…He said, ‘I am most proud of my kids.’ And they asked him, ‘Why are you most proud of your kids?’ And he said, ‘Because they are useful.’ How simple and profound can you get?” Kelley said. “My goal is to be useful, and I am with a bunch of useful people in here.”
Kelley voiced disappointment that the creation of an Emergency Services District for the Colorado County volunteer fire department failed in a county-wide election in May. He said he hopes for the measure to return on a future ballot.
“While the effort failed county-wide, the citizens of Eagle Lake stood up and did the right thing and passed the ballot measure within the city of Eagle Lake,” Kelley said. “This is an issue that must be resolved soon. The cities of Colorado County cannot fully fund our local volunteer firefighter departments to fight fires outside the cities’ limits. This would have been a great financial resource.”
Kelley emphasized the city’s progress in reducing tax rates with almost 14 cents per $100 valuation cut in the last six years. Earlier this fall, the council adopted a 2026-2027 tax rate of $0.586240 per $100, an almost two-cent reduction from last fiscal year.
“I am proud of the state of the city. I am proud to be your mayor. This is our town. This is our home. God, bless our wonderful country. God, bless Eagle Lake. God, bless all of y’all,” Kelley said, ending the address.
